Tear-away package

ABSTRACT

A package, preferably constructed of a plastic or like material, composed of a rigid, somewhat resilient, flat base with a peripheral bead that is snapped into a groove in the bottom edge of an upstanding rolled wall formed from a flat strip of somewhat flexible material. An iced cake or a like food product is constructed in the package which is then covered and quick frozen for transport to where the food product within the container is sold. The upstanding wall has longitudinal grooves formed therein through which icing or coating material can flow to cover the sides of cake layers placed therein. The upstanding wall has a tab at one end that is spot welded or bonded to the other end of the wall so then when the tab is pulled by a purchaser it breaks from the other end, thereby allowing the wall to spring from the container base, and leaving the top and the periphery of a cake on the base fully exposed.

United States Patent [191 Bird et a1.

[ 1 Nov. 19, 1974 TEAR-AWAY PACKAGE [75] Inventors: Stanford W. Bird, Salt Lake City,

Utah; Jerome D. Wasserman, Arlington Heights; Earl L. Hatley, Lake Bluff, both of 111.

[22] Filed: Mar. 29, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 239,238

[52] U.S. C1 229/23 R, 206/4532, 229/4.5,

229/21, 229/51 R, 426/123, 426/414 [51] Int. Cl B65d 11/02, B65d 11/24 [58] Field of Search 229/4.5, 21, 23, 51 R,

229/51 TS, 51 WE; 206/4532; 249/153, 173; 99/171 R, 172, 180 R; 220/4 F 3,537,866 11/1970 Weller et al. 99/180 R 3,690,902 9/1972 Dahl 206/4532 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,056,730 3/1954 France 229/21 Primary Examiner-William 1. Price Assistant Examiner-Stephen Marcus Attorney, Agent, or FirmCridd1e & Thorpe [5 7] ABSTRACT A package, preferably constructed of a plastic or like material, composed of a rigid, somewhat resilient, flat base with a peripheral bead that is snapped into a groove in the bottom edge of an upstanding rolled wall formed from a flat strip of somewhat flexible material. An iced cake or a like food product is constructed in the package which is then covered and quick frozen for transport to where the food product within the container is sold. The upstanding wall has longitudinal grooves formed therein through which icing or coating material can flow to cover the sides of cake layers placed therein. The upstanding wall has a tab at one end that is spot welded or bonded to the other end of the wall so then when the tab is pulled by a purchaser it breaks from the other end, thereby allowing the wall to spring from the container base, and leaving the top and the periphery of a cake on the base fully exposed.

2 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTEL 140v 1 9 I974 sum 2 or 2' FIG.4-

' TEAR-AWAY PACKAGE BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to packaging containers and is particularly concerned with such containers wherein an iced cake or like product is formed and then frozen for storage and transport.

2. Prior Art In the past, it has been known to form an iced cake on a plate within a cardboard container. This has proven satisfactory in the formation, freezing and transport of a cake but presents problems to the comsumer who wishes to neatly remove the cake from the container. The container sidewalls closely surround the cake and make it difficult for a consumer to reach in to remove the cake and supporting plate. Attempts have been made in the past to make the cakes easier to remove by providing side walls that are perforated so that they will tear away from the cake. Such containers, while they may constitute improvements over prior containers, have not been entirely satisfactory since as the walls are removed they frequently engage and disturb the cake surface and frosting and since they are difficult to construct and cannot be simply removed without elaborate instructions.

3. Summary of the Invention Principal objects of the present invention are to provide a container having an attractive appearance, within which a cake or like food item is formed and transported.

Another object is to provide a container composed of a base, uopn which a cake or like food item rests, and an upstanding wall projecting therefrom which can be easily separated from the base without contacting the side surface of a cake therein.

Still another object is to provide a container that is formed in easily formed, low cost sections that can be easily handled and assembled.

Prinicipal features of the present invention include a flat plate-like base made of somewhat rigid, low cost, durable material, such as plastic, with a flange formed around its periphery. The flange has a groove and shoulder formed therein to mate with an oppositely formed ridge and groove on a lower edge of one side of an upstanding wall. The upstanding wall consists of a strip of somewhat resilient material that is wrapped around the base and that has one end overlapping the other and secured to the wall.

The upstanding wall is formed by coupling one strip end having a pull tab to the overlapped wall with plastic spot welds or an adhesive bonding.

The wall is grooved for strength and to provide vertical paths for icing or another decorative coating material to be dispersed over the side of a cake formed therein. The vertical grooves proximate to the opposite ends are arranged to fit into one another when the ends are joined together. The nested arrangement of the grooves cooperates with the welds joining the tab to the wall to provide a secure, but easily released lock arrangement.

A rolled groove is formed along the upper edge of the wall into which a lid can be inserted.

Additional objects and features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and drawings disclosing what is presently contemplated as being the best mode of the invention.

THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the assembled container looking from the front and above the container;

FIG. 2, a perspective view of the container wall of FIG. 1 with the tab separated from the wall;

FIG. 3, a perspective view of the container base of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4, a vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3, and

FIG. 5, an enlarged horizontal section, taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring now to the drawings:

In the illustrated preferred embodiment, the container, shown generally at 10, includes a substantially rigid base 11, preferably made from a suitable plastic, and a wall 12, preferably made from a somewhat resilient plastic material.

Base 1 1, shown in FIG. 3, is formed as a generally flat plate 1 1a containing spaced depressions 13 which serve as feet that support the plate lla on a table or like surface. A downwardly projecting peripheral flange or bead 14 is formed around the edge of the base to serve as a coupling means to which a wall 12 can be connected. A groove 15 is formed in flange 14 and a ridge 15a is provided next to the groove 15. The lowermost edge of ridge 15a forms a foot 15b that is arranged to extend below the plate 11a to the same extent as depressions 13 extend below the plate 11a. Groove 15 and ridge 15a are arranged to mate with a corresponding groove and ridge arrangement of wall 12, as will be hereinafter more fully described.

Wall 12, shown in FIG. 2, originates as a strip of material having a pattern of parallel grooves and intermediate ridges formed therein. One end 16 of the wall is arranged to overlap the other end 17 to form the circular wall. The lower edge of wall 12 is constructed with a transverse ridge l8 and when the wall 12 is formed into its circular configuration ridge 18 will snap past ridge 15a and into groove 15.

End 16 is formed as a flat tab, with a rounded tenninal surface which allows a user to insert his fingers between the tab and the exterior of wall 12 to grasp the tab and to pull the tab from the wall, thereby allowing the natural resiliency of the wall to uncoil it from the base and a cake thereon.

One or more flat surfaces 17a are formed in the wall 12 adjacent to end 17 and between adjacent grooves 19 to provide a bonding to which surface tab 16 can be attached. The strip is formed into wall 12 by spot welding, as shown at 21, or bonding with adhesives or by other means, flat tab 16 to the flat surface 17a.

Pairs of grooves adjacent to the opposite ends of the wall are nested together when the wall is formed and the nesting helps to keep the wall from uncoiling and breaking the spot weld.

Another transverse groove 20 is formed at the top of wall 12 to receive a snap-in lid, not shown.

As seen best in FIGS. 2 and 5, the reverse sides of grooves 19, when seen from within the container, appear as ridges between which are formed grooves 22. Grooves 19 provide channels within which is moved an icing mixture, or like coating material, for covering the side of a cake formed therein.

A cake is typically formed within the container by applying an icing mixture or like decorative coating substance to the plate surface 1 la of the container, and alternately stacking sections of cake and more icing thereon. The cake sections are precooked and the layers of icing are spread therebetween, as well as below and above. A downward pressure is applied to the stacked cake sections, thereby forcing the icing or other decorative coating substance from the base and between the cake sections up along the sides of the cake in channels 19. The sides of the cake are thereby coated, and an icing mixture or like coating substance is applied to the top of the formed cake. The container is then covered with a top, not shown, which is snapped into groove 20, and the container and cake therein are quick frozen for storage or transport. A user, in exposing the cake, merely fits his fingers beneath tab 16, pulls outward thereon to break weld 21, and to peel wall 12 from base 11 upon which the cake rests should the wall not uncoil away from the cake and base due to its own resiliency.

Although a preferred form of our invention has been herein disclosed, it is to be understood that the present disclosure is made by way of example and that variations are possible without departing from the scope of the hereinafter claimed subject matter, which subject matter we regard as our invention.

We claim:

1. A cake container comprising a substantially rigid flat base having a curved bead formed around an upper peripheral edge thereof and an outwardly flared ridge formed around a lower peripheral edge thereof and with a groove formed peripherally around the base between the bead and the ridge;

a wall, formed from a strip of flexible, somewhat resilient material, and having a lower edge wrapped around the base, said lower edge having an outwardly flared ridge extending beneath a groove; and said wall having a groove extending around the top thereof;

means coupling the ends of the strip forming the wall whereby the ends of the groove extending around the top of the wall are nested, the ends of the groove at the lower edge are nested and the ends of the outwardly flared ridge are nested and the wall is of generally ring shaped, whereby the bead of the base fits into the groove at the bottom edge of the wall and the outwardly flared ridge of the wall fits into the groove formed between the bead and the ridge of the base.

2. A cake container as in claim 1, wherein the wall is made of corrugated plastic having parallel grooves and ridges and a flat end said grooves and ridges at opposite ends being overlapped and said flat end being spot welded to the other end of the wall to form the wall into a ring, whereby the flat end projects as a pull tab exteriorly of the ring, and when said spot welds are broken by pulling on said pull tab the entire wall will separate from the base. 

1. A cake container comprising a substantially rigid flat base having a curved bead formed around an upper peripheral edge thereof and an outwardly flared ridge formed around a lower peripheral edge thereof and with a groove formed peripherally around the base between the bead and the ridge; a wall, formed from a strip of flexible, somewhat resilient material, and having a lower edge wrapped around the base, said lower edge having an outwardly flared ridge extending beneath a groove; and said wall having a groove extending around the top thereof; means coupling the ends of the strip forming the wall whereby the ends of the groove extending around the top of the wall are nested, the ends of the groove at the lower edge are nested and the ends of the outwardly flared ridge are nested and the wall is of generally ring shaped, whereby the bead of the base fits into the groove at the bottom edge of the wall and the outwardly flared ridge of the wall fits into the groove formed between the bead and the ridge of the base.
 2. A cake container as in claim 1, wherein the wall is made of corrugated plastic having parallel grooves and ridges and a flat end said grooves and ridges at opposite ends being overlapped and said flat end being spot welded to the other end of the wall to form the wall into a ring, whereby the flat end projects as a pull tab exteriorly of the ring, and when said spot welds are broken by pulling on said pull tab the entire wall will separate from the base. 